“Blessed are the peacemakers, because they will be called children of God.” (Matthew 5:9)
When Paul writes about ‘the peace of God’, he does so in the context of urging Christians in the Philippian church to stop arguing (Philippians 4:2-3). In other words, Paul recognises that it is easier to find peace with each other, when we have first grasped the peace of God in our lives. Indeed, relationship breakdowns and even wars often arise out of contexts of deep anxiety.
To be a peacemaker, is to follow Christ’s example. He came to die for us, so that we could have peace with God. But also to be a peacemaker requires us to be free from anxiety, to not just have peace with God, but also the peace of God in our lives. Out of that God given peace we are equipped to work for peace.
Peace (Fruit of the Spirit, Philippians 4:2-9)
The loss of Peace
It’s now just over three weeks since the beginning of the US and Israeli strikes on Iran. Suddenly the world was plunged into a new conflict, even when war continues to rage in Ukraine, Sudan and many other parts of the world.
We are also seeing that war has a devastating impact beyond the actual fighting. War with Iran means major disruption to the world’s supply of oil, which means the cost of fuel goes up and ultimately the cost of everything goes up. Everyone becomes worse off. Lack of peace leads to lack of prosperity.
In turn this leads to increased levels of anxiety. The fear of our country being sucked into the war and the fear of the economic consequences, take away our inner peace.
What is peace?
We are going through the different characteristics of the fruit of the Spirit. The attitudes and behaviours that the Holy Spirit forms in us, so that our character is increasingly aligned with that of God’s. So that we look more and more like the children of God should look.
We’ve already considered, the first two characteristics, love and joy, and now we come to the third one: ‘peace’.
But what is meant by ‘peace’ in the Bible? Is it a state of mind, an absence of war or conflict or something more than that?
The Old Testament word for ‘peace’ is ‘Shalom.’ It meant more than an absence of war, it referred more to a state of blessing or wellbeing, to life as God has designed it to be.
We see that in the famous blessing, that the High Priest was to give:
“The LORD bless you and keep you;
the LORD make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you;
the LORD turn his face towards you and give you peace.”
(Numbers 6:24-26)
‘Peace’ is the word, that sums up the whole blessing. It indicates a close relationship with God, himself, with his face shining on us and towards us. It talks of a kind of wellbeing, rooted in the graciousness of God, a wellbeing that includes a good state of mind, prosperity and harmony in all our relationships. It is not just an absence of war, but an absence of all the problems that war causes!!
So, how can we find this peace as Christians in a world that is becoming increasingly unpeaceful? How can we develop it as a characteristic of the Fruit of the Spirit?
I have three headings:
Peace is the work of Christ
Peace is the way of Christ
Peace is the word of Christ
Peace is the work of Christ
The message of the whole Bible, is that because we have rejected God as God in our lives, the world is fundamentally messed up. There is no peace, because ultimately we have ruined our relationship with God, by turning away from him.
In Colossians Paul sums up the situation like this:
“Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behaviour.” (Colossians 1:21)
There was no peace between us and God. When our most important relationship, our relationship with God is broken, then everything else is broken.
But, God was not happy with the situation. He sent Jesus to mend this fundamental relationship, to make it possible for us to receive the gift of peace with God. Talking about Jesus, Paul says,
“For God was pleased to have all his fulness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.” (Colossians 1:19-20)
Jesus’ death on the cross, was the ultimate act of peace-making, the greatest work of reconciliation. Peace is the work of Christ.
As Christians we can be confident that we have peace with God and from that truth much else follows. Just as war destroys prosperity and inner peace, reconciliation enables prosperity and inner peace to flourish.
During World War II, the European nations tore themselves apart and left the continent in ruins and poverty. However, from then on the nations of Western Europe worked hard to create a new order of peace and co-operation, that led to the flourishing of prosperity across the Western continent.
In the same way, because of Christ’s work in winning us peace with God, we can reap the benefits of a peaceful relationship with him. We can rejoice in Christ, no matter what the circumstances of life and when anxieties arise, we now have someone to turn to for help:
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:6-7)
Personally, I have always found this verse a deep encouragement. How do we find inner peace in a world of turbulence and change, a world where so much can seem wrong and unfair?
We focus on that most important relationship – our relationship with God. We bring all that is wrong to him, whilst also acknowledging that there is much to give thanks for. In doing so, we know that he is there for us, he cares for us, he knows and understands what we are going through. In that way, we find peace, a deep mystical peace that provides us with an inner security, because It guards our hearts and minds.
Because we have peace with God, we can seek an inner peace through prayer.
That is not always easy. If your state of mind means you find it difficult to pray – and to be honest, I sometimes find my mind is distracted in all kinds of ways, that make it hard to focus on prayer, then there are ways to pray that can help.
One idea is to write the prayers down. That can help you to focus your thoughts more clearly. Another idea is to ask others to pray with or for you. A third idea is to use the Psalms as words for prayer. They powerfully express a whole range of different emotions and difficulties that people face. Even if you can’t find the Psalm which expresses the things you are struggling with, just reading the attempts of others to come to God in prayer can be helpful.
In short, Peace comes from the work of Christ. He wins us peace with God, so that we can find peace in a fuller sense through prayer.
Peace is the way of Christ
But, peace is not just the work of Christ, it is the way of Christ. By that I mean, it is the way of life, the attitude that Christ calls us to in our relationships with one another and the world.
Paul, in his letter to the Ephesians, talks of the work of Christ, as not just creating peace with God, but peace with one another. Paul had grown up as a Jew and despised all non-Jews or Gentiles. It was very much “them” and “us.” Yet, when he became a Christian, he campaigned strongly for the church to accept non-Jews as equal members of the church. Why? Because he believed that Christ had come not just to bring us peace with God, but peace with one another in the world. He writes in Ephesians about the hostility between Jew and Gentile:
“His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace, and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility.” (Ephesians 2:15a-16)
When it comes to ‘peace’ being a characteristic of the fruit of the Spirit, it may be talking about the inner peace we have through being reconciled to God, but it is more likely to do with living a life of peace with others in the world. I say that, because the fruit of the Spirit is contrasted with the works of the flesh, and many of the things Paul lists as the works of the flesh are to do with things that destroy peaceful relationships:
“The works of the flesh are…
hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions…” (Galatians 5:20)
And the New Testament is clear in many places, that as Christians we are called to seek peace in our relationships with others, in imitation of Christ’s work of bringing about peace.
So, Jesus himself says:
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.” (Matthew 5:9)
Paul writes:
“Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace.” (Romans 14:19a)
And in Hebrews it says:
“Make every effort to live in peace with all…” (Hebrews 12:14a)
We are called to follow the way of Christ, and the way of Christ is peace, so we must seek to bring about peace in our relationships.
This is deeply challenging. Churches can very easily slip into factions or groups, with one group judging or looking down on another. Are we working for peace within our church communities and perhaps especially between St. Luke’s and St. George’s as we dare to share more deeply with one another? Or do we slip back too easily into the kind of factional thinking that is the work of the flesh, rather than the fruit of the Spirit?
Are we working for peace with our work colleagues? Or indeed, are we someone who seeks to be a peacemaker in the work place when colleagues fall out?
Are we working for peace in our families as best we can? It is sad that so many families have breakdowns in relationship, that mean they don’t even speak to each other or see each other. Are there things you can do to help create peace within your family?
None of this is easy and the Bible recognises that peace is a two-way thing. Paul recognises, that it cannot always be achieved if the other person won’t co-operate. He writes:
“If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.” (Romans 12:18)
As Christians, though, if we are truly those who have the fruit of the Spirit, then we will want to follow the way of peace.
Peace is the word of Christ
So, peace is the work of Christ and the way of Christ, but it is also the word of Christ.
When we bring people the good news of Jesus, we are offering them peace. Peace with God and through that the opportunity to find inner peace and peace with others.
In Isaiah it associates the proclamation of good news, with the proclamation of peace:
“How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, “Your God reigns!”” (Isaiah 52:7)
In Ephesians, Paul also talks about the gospel as a message of peace. He says that Jesus:
“…came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near.” (Ephesians 2:17)
And later on when talking of the armour of God he says:
“and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.” (Ephesians 6:15)
I wonder if seeing evangelism or sharing the gospel as a work of peace-making, changes your attitude to evangelism and the way you go about it?
As Christians, we are not trying to persuade someone to our way of thinking, we are seeking to show them that there is a way back to God, a way back to that core relationship with our maker. It is more like setting a friend up with their perfect partner than recruiting them to a cause.
And if the message is one of peace, then it needs to be shared in a way that promotes peace. We are not out to win an argument or prove that we are right and they are wrong, we are out to draw someone to share with us in the family of Christ. So, the way we share the message is just as important as the message we share. It will involve treating them with gentleness and respect, listening as much as speaking and showing them the love that we are called to show all people in practical support in life.
People of Peace?
Jesus lived during the age of the Roman Empire. At the time they often spoke of Pax Romana, because in conquering such a vast area, the Romans had created a kind of peace, which was at least a cessation of war. Yet, their “peace” was brought about through much bloodshed and at times bloody oppression of those who dared to rise up against Rome’s power.
Christ came to bring a deeper and fuller peace. Not won through the power of the sword, but the sacrifice of the cross. Not enforced by the armies of an empire, but the transformation of relationships. Not imposed on the unwilling, but welcoming all who will come.
Our call today, in a world, where war and division seems to be increasing, it to be a true people of peace, trusting that Christ has done the work of peace, following in his way of peace and holding out his word of peace.
St. George's Church Ramsgate 